Art Practice and Intuition

It seems too good to be true that it’s ok to go through a period of time after completing a body of work where you’re in low gear. Slowing down. Without directives. Where you can just play, and be curious with your art making. This is an essential part of the creative process, right? Part of sustainability.  

I think the it’s not ok to do that feeling I get before I’ve landed on a new body of work and want to play may come from ingrained capitalist-based morality. Thoughts like I should be finishing paintings instead of playing around, I don’t have time to take a break, and I need to get things done faster,  keep me on the hamster wheel of production, when I need some time to be swinging on the monkey bars in the part of process. They keep me tethered to a system of beliefs that provides the cold comfort If you work hard, you’ll get ahead, be a good person, and be a productive member of society. To some extent, this is true, but it’s so easy to mindlessly apply it to way too many situations.  

Yesterday, I sat down in front of my work table, and intuition immediately said today I’m just going to be goal-less, and paint in sketchbooks today. Then I realized that that was a goal. And so it goes. Another reminder to invite more intuition and process-centered times and days into my practice. It’s one of those things I’ve told myself a million times. Maybe I just need to scrutinize the process/production balance on a regular basis.